motivation monday: how to stand out at work and advance your career

I truly believe in the phrase, “if you do what you love, you will never work a day in your life.” While it can be difficult to discover what it is that you love to do, I am a firm believer in working hard and never settling. That mentality helped me land a job and advance my career with my dream company in under four years. If you find yourself needing some motivation at work, here are my five tips for ways you can stand out and advance your own career:

Be passionate about what you do: I have had a few jobs since I graduated college, and while I liked and did my best work at all of them, I have to admit that I did not have the same level of passion for those jobs as I do for my current job. My dedication to my work combined with my determination to do well fuels my passion, which helps me be a better leader and employee because I am truly invested in the outcome of my work and the work of my team. I love the industry I am in, and that makes going to work each day enjoyable — no matter how crazy the day can get! When you love what you do, people will notice; figuring out your passions and developing them into your career will always inspire you to work hard and do well.

Step out of your comfort zone: Pursuing opportunities that stray from your job requirements is a great way to stand out at work. It is so easy to slip into the routine of showing up for work each day, performing the same job, leaving and repeating this cycle for the rest of the week, so change it up! Search for new challenges that you otherwise would not encounter in your day-to-day duties, whether it be working with another department, taking on a new assignment or traveling for business. Stepping up and out of your comfort zone will help you network with other employees within your company and may open up doors to opportunities you did not realize existed.

Learn to say yes: Be willing to go the extra mile and put in more work than your daily job duties require. Show initiative at work by always helping others, being reliable, taking on new challenges or working on special projects. Sometimes saying yes all the time does not come with an immediate benefit; however, it will always pay off in the long run. Being the person that your boss, your team and other departments can rely on will help you go far in the workplace.

Find a mentor: We all need people to look up to in life, and the same goes for in the office. Find people who inspire you in your field and talk to them. Find out how they got into the industry you are in, what their career trajectory was and what their successes and their failures were. Ask for advice on how you can follow a similar path to them, and then act on it. Finding people whose work ethic you admire, who are well-respected by others and who do their jobs extraordinarily well is important when searching for mentors. Remember, do not look at those around you as your competition; instead, look to them for inspiration and motivation to become an even better employee.

Become an expert in something: While all aspects of your job should always get your full attention, dedicating a little extra time to learning more about a facet of your industry will be extremely beneficial. Communicate with individuals who are knowledgeable about your industry, study and learn as much as possible so that you can become a subject matter expert on something related to your job. Taking the time to learn more than what your job requires will help you stand out to your peers and leaders, and it will help prepare you for whatever your next step within your industry may be!

If you work hard, learn as much as you can and develop new skill sets, you will definitely stand out as a professional in your field. A strong work ethic combined with passion will take you far in any industry, and when you have the opportunity to do what you love every day, it is extremely rewarding.